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Thinking, Sensing & Behaving
Diseases & Disorders
Brain Anatomy & Function
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In the Lab

Neurodegenerative Disorders

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The Past and Promise of Deep Brain Stimulation

A new treatment for Parkinson's disease and other disorders arises from an outbreak of contaminated street drugs — and years of painstaking brain research.

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Your selections: Neurodegenerative Disorders

Parkinson’s Disease Treatment Breakthroughs—and the Need for More Research

The discovery in the late 1950s that the level of dopamine was decreased in the brains of Parkinson’s patients was followed in the 1960s by successful treatment with the drug levodopa, which is converted to dopamine in the brain. This historical event is one of the greatest medical breakthroughs in the field of neurology.

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Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

This progressive disorder strikes approximately 5,600 Americans annually, with an average survival time of just two to five years from symptom onset.

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Alzheimer's Disease: Latest Research and Treatments

Currently approved treatments for Alzheimer’s disease do not modify the course of the disease and offer only temporary mitigation of some symptoms, such as agitation, anxiety, unpredictable behavior, sleep disturbances, and depression.

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Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurological disorder that affects approximately 1.5 million individuals in the United States. Typically, people start showing symptoms over the age of 50. In fact, aging is the only known risk factor for the development of this disorder.

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Huntington’s Disease

Affecting some 30,000 Americans and placing 200,000 more Americans at risk for inheriting the disease from an affected parent, Huntington’s disease is now considered one of the most common hereditary brain disorders.

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Trophic Factors

Molecules that are important in brain development may help treat or prevent brain injuries and disorders.

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More Complex Movements

Networks of spinal neurons also participate in controlling the alternating action of the legs during normal walking, maintaining posture, and, to a large degree, in all movements.

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Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia Tomorrow

Although scientists have made great strides in understanding Alzheimer’s disease, no treatment has been approved for halting or reversing the condition. Meanwhile, the need is becoming more urgent, as populations in the world’s developed nations grow older and live longer.